Dream Of Demons
by Kemara
Summary: Monica is captured by demons and tortured.


Dream of Demons  
_A Touched by an Angel story  
By Kim Sisk ([kemara@aol.com][1]) _   


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**Prologue **  
  
The city street was dark and cold. Monica pulled her heavy red coat closer, shivering. She was waiting for Tess, and she couldn't help but wish her supervisor would hurry. The bleak apartment buildings seemed almost sinister in the shadows. She remember how she had been homeless once in a place very much like this. It had not been an easy case, and she still blushed to recall how she had doubted God. She had learned that He would never forget her even when things seemed hopeless. But something about this place inspired hopelessness and despair.

The angel paced up and down the sidewalk, her unease growing every minute.

"I will fear no evil," she whispered, reaching out to the comforting presence of the Father, always there at the edge of her thoughts.

But tonight she felt nothing....no peace, love, or even disapproval. It was like slamming into a brick wall and she gasped in shock. Monica had been deprived of her angelic powers on many assignments, but her trust in God had always remained. Now, even that was gone.

"What's happening?" she wondered, fear rising. A dark figure stepped out of the nearby alley.

"Hello, Monica."

In panic, Monica turned to run but something hit her from behind, slamming her to the ground. As unconsciousness closed in, she sent out a last desperate prayer for help.

**Chapter 1 **  
  
Tess and Andrew hurried along the street, bracing themselves against the chilly wind.

"I sure hope Monica hasn't been waiting long. This cold's enough to freeze anyone, human or angel," Tess panted, walking faster.

They passed a brightly lit coffee shop and Andrew glanced in the window, half hoping to see Monica enjoying a Mocha Latte, but she was nowhere to be seen.

As they approached the spot where they were to meet Monica, he felt a gentle tug in his mind and stopped short.

"Wait, Tess. Something's wrong."

The older angel looked up at him, worry in her eyes. "What is it Angel Boy?"

"I'm not sure...." he trailed off distractedly. To a human, the deserted tenement area would have been vaguely threatening, but he sensed something else, something evil.

Motioning for Tess to stay put, he took a few steps forward. Instantly he felt the silence, an absence, not of physical noises, but of mental ones. All his angelic powers were gone, as if cut off with a knife. He stepped back and once again the presence of the Father and the rest of the Heavenly Host was comforting in his mind.

Tess was startled by the fear on Andrew's face. She took his arm.

"Tess, don't move. There's some kind of barrier here. If I'm right about this, Monica is in very big trouble."

"Barrier? What do you mean?" Tess demanded.

"I've seen this a few times when demons are involved. There's so much evil around them that our angelic powers don't work at all," Andrew replied.

"Are you saying demons have Monica?" Tess' voice was low and dangerous.

"I hope not, Tess, but it looks that way." Andrew said. "Please Lord, let me be wrong," he prayed silently.

"But what would they want with her?"

"I don't know, but I have a very good idea of who's behind it."

Tess frowned. "Kathleen."

Andrew just nodded grimly.

**Chapter 2**   
  
Monica groaned. Every inch of her body hurt. Weakly she opened her eyes. She lay on a cold cement floor, damp with water from the trickling walls. Small windows near the ceiling let in enough moonlight for her to make out a large basement room.

She tried to sit up, and then realized that her hands were tied behind her back with thick ropes. She couldn't break them. "But they're just simple cords; they should snap easily," she thought. Again she tried to use the angelic strength she had relied upon so often in Search and Rescue. Nothing happened. She twisted her wrists, but the ropes only bit tighter. Finally, she stopped, sweating with the effort.

Using the wall for leverage and pushing with her legs, Monica managed to sit up, wincing at the pain in her head.

Her coat was gone and her teeth began to chatter as much from fright as from the cold. She could see now that the room had no doors, only four cinder block walls. Humans couldn't walk through walls. That meant whoever had captured her was not human....."That was Kathleen I saw. I'm sure of it. Oh, Lord, help me please!" But as before, there was no response to her prayers.

Taking deep breaths to calm herself she tried to think clearly. She was in human form without any of her special powers. She had no assurance that God heard her prayers. "I wonder if this is how humans feel every day of their lives," she wondered. It's so frightening. No wonder they give in to despair sometimes." No! She would not give up hope! Tess and Andrew must have discovered that she was missing by now. They would do everything they could to help her.

"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil." Her voice was shaky, but the words gave her confidence. "God can still hear me even if I can't hear Him. I have to believe that."

Monica closed her eyes, letting the words pour from her heart. Prayers of fear: "I'm so scared..." and anger: "Why is this happening to me?....," but finally, of love and acceptance. Hours passed. Slowly she felt peace stealing over her like a warm blanket. She lifted her head, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Your will be done, Father. I trust you."

**Chapter 3 **

"Hello, Clara. I guess it's pretty bad, then?" Tess looked up from her seat on the park bench as the archangel appeared.

"Hello Tess, Andrew. Yes, Monica's disappearance is very serious. If she isn't found soon, we'll have to call in Sam and the rest of Special Forces."

"But God knows where Monica is, doesn't He? Why doesn't He tell us?" Andrew's voice was taunt with worry. He fidgeted, unable to sit still.

Clara looked at her old friend sternly. "Of course God knows where she is. If He chooses to keep that from us, we have no right to question Him. Things will happen in His time, not ours."

Andrew sighed and nodded. "I'm sorry, Clara. I know that, but anything could be happening to Monica right now!"

Clara laid a hand on his shoulder. "I know Andrew. And you're right that we need to hurry." She surveyed the city around them, still hidden in pre-dawn darkness. "Now, show me where you felt this barrier."

**Chapter 4**

Monica woke from a troubled sleep.

Three demons stood over her. Even though they were in human form she didn't need her angelic senses to know what they really were. She realized that on some level she had been expecting them ever since she'd regained consciousness in this bare stone room.

All three appeared as handsome men, devilishly handsome in fact. "I wonder if that's where humans got the term," Monica thought with wry humor. They stared down at her with evil eyes, saying nothing, just looking.

She marveled that she wasn't more apprehensive. She had no cause to be, yet. Until then she thanked God for the small measure of peace He had granted her. "The calm before the storm, I guess."

"What do you want?" Her voice was steady. She raised her chin and returned their stares.

The tallest man squatted down in front of her.

"You're just as pretty as she said." He reached out a hand and caressed her cheek. She gasped but refused to flinch, as his touch burned her skin. "Oh, I'm sorry. Did I hurt you?" He smiled and stood as the other men laughed.

"We'll be back later with an old friend of yours," another one told her. "Seems the two of you have a lot to discuss. Girl talk, you know." He snickered as all three vanished, leaving a stench in the musty air.

Monica sighed with relief and leaned back against the wall. "Thank you, Father," she prayed. Her face throbbed with pain, but not seriously. "When I think of what You endured on earth, this is easy to bear for Your sake." Ignoring the discomfort, she continued to pray. Waiting.

**Chapter 5**

Clara stood with Andrew and Tess in front of the piece of sidewalk where the demonic "barrier" began. She had walked back and forth across it several times, and while her angelic powers became limited to some extent, they were not totally cut off as was the case with her fellow angels.

"Why doesn't it affect you the same way, Clara?" Andrew wanted to know. Tess just stood bundled into her coat saying nothing, only praying constantly for Monica's safety.

Clara smiled grimly at Andrew. "Because I'm much older than you, Andrew. Even older than Tess if you can believe it." Tess snorted good naturedly, her dark mood broken for a moment. Clara continued: "I've been fighting the Enemy for a very long time. As you already know, these barriers are a kind of side effect caused by the presence of evil concentrated in one spot. Monica is probably very nearby, but she is also well guarded."

Tess spoke up for the first time. "So how can we get her out?"

"We'll need help, that's for certain. I'll speak to some friends of mine in Special Forces. With the Father's help, we'll find her." Clara's voice rang in the cold air, strong and confident.

With renewed hope, Andrew redoubled his prayers. He hoped Monica wasn't being treated badly by Kathleen, the two had been friends after all, but in his heart he knew better.

**Chapter 6**

"Well, what have we here?"

Her prayers interrupted, Monica lifted her head. Kathleen looked no different from the last time they had met. Her trim black suit contrasted sharply with Monica's own simple blouse and skirt, now very rumpled. The three demons waited nearby.

"Get her up", Kathleen ordered them. Roughly they dragged her to her feet. She swayed unsteadily but shook them off, fighting to stand on her own. They let go, but stayed on either side, guarding her.

"Why are you doing this, Kathleen?"

"Why?" The fallen angel lifted a delicate eyebrow. " Do I need a reason?"

Monica knew she would never understand why Kathleen had chosen the dark side, but surely there was something of her old friend left. Finding it might be difficult, though. "Father, help me know what to say."

"We loved you Kathleen. We still do." She held Kathleen's gaze. "God loves you very much."

Quick as a striking snake Kathleen stepped forward and slapped Monica's face. The blow snapped her head to the side and again she felt the searing pain of a burn.

"Wrong answer!" Kathleen hissed. "Don't talk to me about love! Do you know how long I watched humans suffer while God turned a blind eye?"

"God loves all his children," Monica protested. "But he gave humans free will. They have a choice whether to love or hate."

"Ah, yes. That glorious free will!" Kathleen's smile was triumphant. "Do you know how many humans have chosen by their free will to join us? Every day there are more. We're winning, Monica."

"No. You'll never win." Monica replied confidently. "The power of love can overcome the power of hate any day."

"We'll see if you still believe that when we're done with you." Kathleen nodded to the demons and disappeared.

The first punch caught Monica by surprise. The second drove her to her knees. She fell heavily, unable to catch herself. As she huddled on the floor the fallen angels beat her savagely. Each blow caused not only bruises and broken bones where they landed but also more burns. As they beat her the demons laughed and taunted her.

"Where's your God now? Why hasn't he helped you?"

Biting her lip to keep from crying out, Monica made no reply except to increase her prayers. "Help me be strong, Father. Help me...."

**Chapter 7**

Just before dawn a group of the Heavenly Host gathered in the twilight. Clara had enlisted the help of her fellow archangels, Joseph and Thomas, as well as several warriors from Special Forces. Their plan was to go behind the barrier and search the surrounding tenements for any sign of Monica and her captors.

"I expect we'll meet with some resistance, perhaps as soon as we cross over," Clara cautioned them all. "So Tess and Andrew must be protected, since they are the most vulnerable." Tess grumbled at this, but kept quiet.

"Now, let's pray to the Father for guidance." The group bowed their heads in worship. "Father, we ask you to aid us in our search, and that we may show your mercy to your fallen children. We pray for Monica, that you will be with her and give her patience and strength. Amen."

"Amen," the others echoed. Quietly they readied themselves for a confrontation, Andrew and Tess surrounded on every side by burly warriors from Sam's elite group.

With Clara in the lead, the group stepped over the barrier in unison. Immediately, they felt the evil around them. It hung in the air like thick smog, making moving, even breathing, difficult for anyone less than an angel. The crumbling brick apartment buildings loomed in the darkness, every alley capable of concealing one of the Enemy's followers.

"Stay together," Clara ordered. The blond archangel scanned the area, her quick eyes missing nothing. Something moved between two trash cans. "Thomas!"

Almost before Clara spoke, Thomas had darted over and dragged a demon into the light. The creature had once appeared as a handsome human man, but now its' twisted face no longer bore any human or angelic resemblance.

"Let go of me!" he hissed, struggling in Thomas' grip. The burly warrior only squeezed tighter and refused to be moved.

Clara stood in front of the demon, her arms folded. "We're looking for a friend of ours," she told him quietly. "Tell us where she is and we'll let you go...for now."

The creature looked relieved at being given the chance to escape so easily. "That...that building over there," he stuttered nervously. He pointed down the street. "Go down to the basement."

"Thank you." Clara nodded. "Let him go Thomas."

The demon scurried away as quickly as he could.

"Wait!" Clara called after him. He turned quickly. "You can always come home, you know. All you have to do is ask."

The fallen angel stared at her for a moment and almost seemed to waver. Then he shook his head and hurried off into the darkness.

Again the group of angels moved on. They met with two more demons...one outside the building and another on the stairs. Both fled in terror, with out any fight.

Thomas shook his head. "Cowards," he muttered. "They are nothing without their master to guide them."

At the bottom of the stairs a doorway gaped, revealed now for the first time. Andrew drew a deep breath, afraid of what they would find inside. What had they done to Monica? How badly was she hurt? Tess squeezed his hand as they followed Joseph inside the dank room.

**Chapter 8**

Monica lay curled into a ball in one corner, unconscious. Her clothes were ripped and stained, her body covered with oozing burns, charred in some places down to the bone. Andrew touched her arm gently then drew back to show Tess the blood on his fingertips.

Joseph came up to them, his gray eyes flashing. "The barrier is gone now. Looks like that Kathleen and her friends ran as fast as they could when they saw us coming." He looked down at Monica in sorrow. "She took quite a beating. It took great courage to face four demons alone. She might do well in Special Forces someday." He glanced quickly at Tess. "After she's done learning all you have to teach her of course, Tess."

Tess nodded. She leaned over and brushed Monica's red hair back. "I'm real proud of you Angel Girl, real proud." Despite her words, Monica did not respond.

"Andrew! Can you bring her out?" Clara called from where stood in the doorway, keeping watch.

Carefully, the angel of death lifted Monica into his arms and carried her out of the building, with Tess at his side. Clara and the others followed them onto the sidewalk.

"Let's get her away from here," Clara said, her face troubled. "She needs the Father's healing." She led the group back to the park, a quiet patch of green in the middle of the city's morning rush hour.

Andrew started to lay Monica down on the cool grass, but Clara stopped him. "It might be better if you held her," the archangel looked at Tess, "both of you. She'll be in a lot of pain when she wakes up, and it will help to have you close."

Andrew met Tess' eyes. He could tell she was remembering how Monica had held and comforted the drug addict, Lydia, through the pains of withdrawal. Now, they did the same for Monica. Together they sat on the ground and cradled her between them.

True to Clara's words, Monica began to thrash and whimper as she regained consciousness. Andrew held her tighter to keep her from hurting herself further. Tess laid a comforting hand on Monica's unburned cheek.

"It's alright, Angel Baby. You're safe now."

For a moment Monica's eyes opened, but there was no recognition in them. She stared up at Tess and Andrew wildly.

"I tried to be strong, Father. I tried...." She trailed off.

Their friends gathered in a circle around them, kneeling in prayer. Andrew heard Clara's voice, storming the Heavens. "Lord, we ask you to send your healing upon your servant, Monica. Soothe all her wounds, mental and physical. Let your love reclaim her from darkness."

Sunlight broke through the clouds above, it's warm rays shining directly on Monica. In response, the glow of God's love spread to the other angels who prayed so hard for her recovery. Gradually, the burns on Monica's skin healed to scars and then disappeared completely. Crisp garments of gleaming white replaced her tattered clothing. Finally, she awakened, brown eyes alert and aware.

"Welcome back, Baby." Tess kissed her forehead. Andrew took her hand, and Monica smiled up at them.

Slowly she got to her feet and lifted her face to the sunlight, letting it warm her inside and out. As she stood there, the golden light of the Father surrounded her and they heard Him speak. "You've done well, my child. I'm very proud of you." Tears of happiness on her face, Monica knelt in adoration. "I thank you for your loving defense of Me and for the hurts you endured for My sake. Well done indeed!"

As the light faded, Monica's friends surrounded her, rejoicing. Through her tears Monica saw a white dove fluttering away towards Heaven.

~The End~

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